Scène antique, femmes en péplum

Details

PIERRE-AUGUSTE RENOIR (1841-1919)
Scène antique, femmes en péplum
signed 'Renoir' (upper left)
oil on canvas
16 3⁄8 x 13 in. (41.1 x 32.7 cm.)
Painted in 1895

Provenance

Ambroise Vollard, Paris (acquired from the artist, until at least January 1922).
Roger Lagrave, Paris; sale, Galerie Charpentier, Paris, 16 June 1953, lot 57.
René Coulon, Paris (acquired at the above sale); sale, Sotheby's, London, 28 June 1989, lot 121.
Aska International Ltd., Tokyo (acquired at the above sale).
Private collection, Tokyo; sale, Sotheby's, New York, 14 May 1997, lot 125.
Acquired at the above sale by the present owner.

Literature

A. Vollard, Tableaux, pastels et dessins de Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paris, 1918, vol. I, p. 127, no. 304 (illustrated).
G.-P. and M. Dauberville, Renoir: Catalogue raisonné des tableaux, pastels, dessins et aquarelles, 1895-1902, Paris, 2010, vol. III, p. 259, no. 2163 (illustrated).

Exhibited

Paris, Galerie Beaux-Arts, Chefs-d'oeuvre de Renoir dans les collections particulières françaises, June 1954, no. 46 (dated circa 1900; titled Femmes en péplum violet rouge et bleu).

Further details

This work will be included in the forthcoming Pierre-Auguste Renoir digital catalogue raisonné, currently being prepared under the sponsorship of the Wildenstein Plattner Institute, Inc.

Conditions of sale

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Lot Essay

In 1895, Renoir was commissioned by his friend and patron, Paul Gallimard—the director of the Théâtre de Variétés—to create decorative work for his Paris townhouse. The chosen theme for the project was Oedipus, drawn from the Greek tragedy. The figures in the resulting painting reflect this subject, highlighting Renoir’s study of classical drapery and expressive female forms.

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